


Stargazing

by CrookshanksAgentofOWCA



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Bellamort, Evil Love, F/M, Mention of Child Abuse, Mention of sexism, Romance, Stargazing, name meanings, this is pretty sappy I'm warning you now, title is very on the nose cause i couldn't think of a better one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:48:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29831385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrookshanksAgentofOWCA/pseuds/CrookshanksAgentofOWCA
Summary: While the couple looks up at the night sky, Bellatrix shows Voldemort the star she's named after.
Relationships: Bellatrix Black Lestrange/Voldemort
Comments: 1
Kudos: 13





	Stargazing

“That’s me,” Bellatrix Lestrange said, pointing up into the night sky.

“What?” Lord Voldemort asked in confusion.

They were up on the roof, gazing at the stars and sharing a box of chocolates they’d taken from a Muggle shop they’d destroyed. The winter night was cold, but they were wearing their warmest cloaks and huddled close together.

“That’s the star I’m named after,” she explained. “Bellatrix.”

“Which one is it?”  
She took his hand and guided it upwards until it was pointing in the right direction.

“You see Orion there?”  
“Yes, those three stars are the belt.”

“Right, Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka.”

He gave her a curious look.

“Astronomy’s kind of a big deal in my family,” she reminded him. “Anyway, if you look above the belt, see those two stars that sort of form a triangle with it?”  
“Yes.”  
“Those are supposed to be Orion’s shoulders. The really bright one’s called Betelguese, but the one on the right is Bellatrix.”

“Ah. It’s lovely.” For a moment they stared at the tiny glimmering spot in the sky in silence. Then Voldemort murmured, “Although I have to say, of the two Bellatrixes, you are by far the loveliest.”  
Bella felt herself blush furiously and was grateful of the cover of darkness.

“Where’d you pick that line up?” she asked, trying to sound jokey and casual.

“I meant it sincerely. As much as I enjoy watching the stars, I enjoy watching you far more.”

She turned to face him and found him gazing at her with a tenderness she wouldn’t have thought possible.

“I like looking at you, too,” she said, reaching out to touch his face. “You’re gorgeous.”

He laughed softly.

“Quite a few people have told me the opposite.”  
“Those people are fools! I’d torture them for you, but I’m guessing they’re already dead.”  
“Indeed, they are. But I appreciate your offer nonetheless.”

They both looked back to the heavens.

“I know naming children after constellations or stars is a tradition in your family,” Voldemort said after a brief silence, “But for you it seems particularly appropriate.”  
“Are you…saying I’m a star, my Lord?”  
“Yes.”  
“So I’m a twenty-five million-year-old ball of hot gas?”

“No!” He panicked, worrying he had upset her, but she grinned teasingly at him. “You know that’s not what I meant. Although, if you were twenty-five million, I would be quite impressed and desperate to learn your secret. But you have many star-like qualities. The power you possess is extraordinary. You shine in the darkness. I—and many others—find myself drawn to you like a planet orbiting a star. And, as I mentioned before, you’re beautiful.”

Bellatrix felt a tear leak out of her eye.

“Thank you, my Lord. It’s incredibly generous of you to say such things.”

“It’s only the truth.”

Bellatrix snorted.

“You know why my parents called me Bellatrix? Aside from family tradition?”

“I know it’s Latin for ‘female warrior,’ which certainly fits you.”

“Yeah, apparently I was always a warrior, even before I was born. My mother says I kicked a lot in the womb. Never stopped complaining about it, like she expects me to make up for it now or something. And then I was born screaming. Took them hours to shut me up. So they decided I was a fighter and called me Bellatrix. But it wasn’t a compliment. It was their way of noting what a difficult child I was. Unfortunately for them, I lived up to the name more and more as I grew up. I think they regret calling me that, now. Mother definitely does anyway. She probably regrets that I was even born.”  
“How could she?!” Voldemort cried in shock. “I would think any parent would be proud to have a daughter like you!”

“Well, she wanted a son, to carry on the Black name.”

“That’s ridiculous. Surely your magical prowess contributes more to your family’s legacy than your gender.”

“You’d think, but my mother’s old-fashioned. And when she had daughters, she hoped they’d at least be proper young ladies and improve her social standing. And she did get Cissy, eventually. Not that she started out that way. We used to run wild in the forest around our estate. Then we’d track mud into the house and Mother would scream at us and Cissy would start crying, so I screamed back, trying to defend her. Sometimes, when Mother wasn’t in the mood to argue, she’d just hit me. Or jinx me.”  
“And your father? He let her treat you that way?”  
Voldemort didn’t know Cygnus Black well, but the man had always seemed quite proud and fond of his two daughters. Bella sighed.

“The thing about Father is…he liked the fun parts of being a dad but he couldn’t handle the tough parts. He’d be happy to play games with us and buy us presents, but if we started crying, he’d disappear. He let our mother handle everything he couldn’t and he wasn’t about to argue with her methods.”  
“I had no idea,” Voldemort said softly. “I wish things had been different for you.”  
“It wasn’t that bad. She didn’t hit me much; it was mostly just yelling. And I could have avoided that if I’d obeyed her more, but—” She shrugged. “I refused to be broken. Besides, with all her anger focused on me, she left Cissy alone.”

“My parents didn’t want me,” Voldemort said suddenly. “My father didn’t really matter anyway, but my mother…she chose _death_ over me. Who would do such a thing?”  
Bellatrix laid a cautious hand on the Dark Lord’s shoulder. She’d never heard him talk about his parents before, but she knew the story. Everyone did, not that they’d ever say so to his face.

“That was her mistake. You are truly a gift to this world. I don’t know how she could have failed to see it, even when you were a baby. I see it. All of the Death Eaters do. And someday, everyone will.”  
Voldemort just nodded, overcome with far more emotion than he was comfortable with. After a long silence, he finally said,

“You’re parents were—are mistaken too. I’m glad you were born. And I’m glad you’re a warrior. I like you the way you are.”  
“That…that means a lot, my Lord. I really like the way you are too.”  
“Like” wasn’t quite the word she wanted to use. But this was a good moment and she wasn’t about to ruin it with a forbidden topic.

“I know,” he said, taking her hand and kissing it. “And I appreciate that.”

Bellatrix smiled widely, her heart practically melting as his lips touched her skin. They sat quietly for a while, fingers woven together, each feeling, for the first time, as though they had found someone who truly understood them. There was more they wanted to say, new feelings they were unsure how to express, but for now, it felt safest to move on.

“I’ll confess I don’t remember much of what I learned about Astronomy at Hogwarts,” Voldemort said, gazing upwards once more. “Will you tell me more about the stars?”  
So Bellatrix did and they stayed on the roof, admiring both the stars and each other, until the sun rose and they began to fade.


End file.
